WGEM-FM is a radio station in Quincy, Illinois

Quincy, Illinois

Quincy, known as Illinois' "Gem City," is a river city along the Mississippi River and the county seat of Adams County. As of the 2010 census the city held a population of 40,633. The city anchors its own micropolitan area and is the economic and regional hub of West-central Illinois, catering a...

 broadcasting a news/talk

Talk radio

Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often feature interviews with a number of different guests. Talk radio typically includes an element of listener participation, usually by broadcasting live...

 format. The station is owned by Quincy Newspapers

Quincy Newspapers

Quincy Newspapers, Inc. is a family-owned media company that originated in the newspapers of Quincy, Illinois. The company's history can be traced back to 1835, when the Bounty Land Register was one of only four newspapers in all of Illinois. Over the next century, a number of mergers followed...

.

History

The station signed on August 1, 1947 as WQDI. It was Quincy Newspapers' first broadcasting station, signing on five months before WGEM

WGEM (AM)

WGEM-AM WGEM-AM WGEM-AM (1440 AM is a radio station in Quincy, Illinois broadcasting a Sports format. The station is owned by Quincy Newspapers.-Programming:...

; it was also the first FM station in the market. The WQDI callsign was retained until 1953, when the station became WGEM-FM to match the AM station and WGEM-TV

WGEM-TV

WGEM-TV is the NBC-affiliated television station for the Tri-States area of Western Illinois, Northeastern Missouri, and extreme Southeastern Iowa that is licensed to Quincy, Illinois. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on VHF channel 10 from a transmitter east of the city on Cannonball...

.

For much of its early history, WGEM-FM was a simulcast of WGEM. This ended by 1976, when the station implemented a country music

Country music

Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...

 format; "Gem Country" lasted until 2002, when it gave way to the current news/talk format.

Programming

WGEM-FM's schedule includes several news-oriented local programs, as well as simulcasts of WGEM-TV's newscasts and NBC Nightly News

NBC Nightly News

NBC Nightly News is the flagship daily evening television news program for NBC News and broadcasts. NBC Nightly News has aired from Studio 3B, located on floors 3 of the NBC Studios is the headquarters of the GE Building forms the centerpiece of 30th Rockefeller Center it is located in the center...

. The station also carries some syndicated talk shows, including The Neal Boortz Show

Neal Boortz

Neal A. Boortz, Jr. is an American Libertarian radio host, author, and political commentator. His nationally syndicated talk show, The Neal Boortz Show, airs throughout the United States on Dial Global . It is ranked seventh in overall listeners, with 4.25+ million per week...

, The Clark Howard Show

Clark Howard

Clark Howard , is a popular U.S. talk radio host of the nationally syndicated consumer advocate program The Clark Howard Show. The show covers consumer and financial news, with advice on how to spend less, save more and avoid rip-offs...

, The Laura Ingraham Show

The Laura Ingraham Show

The Laura Ingraham Show is a three-hour American radio show hosted by conservative commentator Laura Ingraham on Talk Radio Network. , the show is broadcast live on Channel 2, from 9 a.m...

, and The Michael Medved Show

Michael Medved

Michael Medved is an American radio host, author, political commentator and film critic. His Seattle, Washington-based nationally syndicated talk show, The Michael Medved Show, airs throughout the U.S...

. WGEM-FM also carries St. Louis Cardinals

St. Louis Cardinals

The St. Louis Cardinals are a professional baseball team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are members of the Central Division in the National League of Major League Baseball. The Cardinals have won eleven World Series championships, the most of any National League team, and second overall only to...

baseball.